skevy/history — explained in plain English
Analysis updated 2026-07-17 · repo last pushed 2015-09-21
Build a single-page app where clicking between sections like Inbox and Drafts works with proper back/forward navigation.
Track and respond to URL changes without directly using the browser's history APIs.
Manage navigation consistently across web, testing, and React Native environments.
| skevy/history | a15n/a15n | a15n/checkout-validation | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Language | JavaScript | JavaScript | JavaScript |
| Last pushed | 2015-09-21 | 2019-04-07 | 2014-09-04 |
| Maintenance | Dormant | Dormant | Dormant |
| Setup difficulty | easy | easy | easy |
| Complexity | 2/5 | 2/5 | 2/5 |
| Audience | developer | general | developer |
Figures from each repo's GitHub metadata at analysis time.
This is a JavaScript library that makes it easy to manage browser navigation history, the back button, forward button, and URL changes that happen as users move through your app. In plain terms, when someone clicks a link or your app changes pages, you need to track where they've been, update the URL in the address bar, and let them navigate back and forth. This library handles all of that for you. Instead of wrestling with the browser's built-in history APIs (which can be tricky and inconsistent), you call simple functions like "push a new page onto the history stack" or "listen for when the user navigates somewhere." The library takes care of the messy details behind the scenes. You'd use this if you're building a single-page app, where one HTML page actually contains many different screens that switch in and out without full page reloads. For example, a Gmail-like app where clicking "Inbox," then "Drafts," then the back button should work intuitively. The library also works in testing environments and, eventually, React Native apps, so your navigation code behaves consistently no matter where it runs. The appeal here is simplicity. Instead of exposing all the complexity of the browser's history mechanism, the library gives you a small, clean API: you can listen for navigation changes, push new locations onto the history stack, and manage state that persists between sessions. It's designed to be independent of any particular framework, so whether you're using React, Vue, or plain JavaScript, you can drop it in. The README acknowledges this is meant to be minimal and functional, not feature-heavy, just what you actually need to handle navigation reliably.
A JavaScript library that manages browser navigation history (back/forward/URL changes) so single-page apps can handle routing without wrestling with browser APIs directly.
Mainly JavaScript. The stack also includes JavaScript.
Dormant — no commits in 2+ years (last push 2015-09-21).
Setup difficulty is rated easy, with roughly 30min to a first successful run.
Mainly developer.
This repo across BitVibe Labs
double-check against the repo, no cap.